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2004 BMW 530 Owner Comments

530 6-cyl

79,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The front passenger air bags is deactivated and the air bag warning lamp as well as the passenger air bag "on-off" lamp is illuminated. This issue is the same as the 2004 BMW 5 series frontal airbag recall ( #08V384000), but for some reason when I contacted BMW at 1-800-525-7417 and provided them my VIN number they said it wasn't covered under the recall. Please review and reconsider as this is a serious defect that needs to be addressed.

530 8-cyl

530 6-cyl

100,000 miles

The contact owns a 2004 BMW 530I. The contact stated that upon starting the vehicle, an airbag warning light illuminated on the instrument panel. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer and the contact was informed that the vehicle was not included in the recall associated with NHTSA campaign id number 08V384000 (air bags:frontal). The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and offered no assistance. The failure mileage was 100,000. Updated 01/03/12 updated 01/09/12

530

78,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The contact owns a 2004 BMW 545. The contact stated that the air bag and passenger restraint lights were illuminating on the dash board. The contact took the vehicle to a dealer and was told that the passenger seat occupant detection mat failed. The dealer stated there was a recall under NHTSA campaign id number: 08V384000 (air bags: Frontal), but the vehicle was not included. The failure mileage was 78,000 and the current mileage was 80,200.

530

109,000 miles

Within the past 6 months of driving, my airbag for the passenger side had tripped three times. The third time I brought it in, I researched on a recall for the passenger sensor. I printed out the page from safercar.gov, and they told me that my VIN# does not fall under the category. The recall specifically stated for my BMW 545I 2004. I am not happy due to the fact that you buy a car and for something that cannot wear out brakes...

530

70,000 miles

I have my car routinely serviced with a certified BMW technician at a BMW service center. Recently my technician told me my car gave a code for passenger airbag failure. My car has been in no accidents. Currently I have a "fault detection" of the front passenger airbag sensor. If someone were to sit in the front passenger seat and if the vehicle sustained any front end damage, the front passenger airbag would not deploy. As of now the vehicle cannot determine if someone is sitting in the front passenger seat or not. This failure will not allow the front passenger airbag to deploy if the vehicle were in a collision. BMW is fully aware of this issue. Infact, they have stated that cracks are caused due to getting in and out of the vehicle on the passenger side, as a result, the airbag sensor fails in the front passenger seat. There has been a recall for this code however, BMW claims my car is not covered. The year, make, model and seat all qualify for this recall. Safety is a very serious concern and I cannot see how this cannot be covered.

530 6-cyl

Automatic transmission

29,474 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The contact owns a 2004 BMW 530I. While driving approximately 45 mph the air bag light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who replaced the front passenger side seat mat sensor on March 15, 2006 because it was defective. The failure recurred in July 2010. He took the vehicle back to the dealer and was advised that he had to pay for the repairs. The vehicle had not been repaired. The contact also stated that the fuel gauge was no longer working properly. The fuel gauge displayed one quarter of a tank and a half of tank; however, the fuel tank was empty and caused the vehicle shut off. The failure was not repaired. The failure failure mileage was 29,474 and the current mileage was 82,000. Updated 03/02/11 updated 04/29/11

530

91,000 miles

The contact owns a 2004 BMW 545I (na). The contact stated while driving approximately 35 mph, the front passenger side air bag warning light illuminated. The malfunction continued until the engine was shut off. The failure occurred whenever the vehicle was in operation. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where they informed that the air bag senor would need to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 91,000.

530

90,000 miles

The contact owns a 2004 BMW 530I. The contact stated that the passenger side air bag light illuminated. The contact took the vehicle to the dealer and was told that the failure was caused by cracks in the passenger seat, which could also cause the air bag light to come on and prevent air bag from deploying in a crash. The dealer and manufacturer stated that the vehicle was not included in recall campaign 08V384000, air bags, frontal which was related to the failure. The failure and current mileages were 90,000.

530

77,000 miles

The contact owns a 2004 BMW 530I. The contact stated that while sitting in the passenger seat the air bag light came on indicating that the passenger side air bag malfunctioned. The contact took the vehicle to the dealer who informed the contact that the mat which holds the sensor cracked. This was a known failure with this year make and model vehicle. The manufacturer issued a recall regarding the air bags:frontal (08V384000) but the VIN was not a part of the recall. Previously the contact had the air bag sensor replaced in the passenger seat in 2006 at 33,000 miles but the seat had malfunctioned again. The contact stated that this was a major safety issue because the air bag may not deploy if the vehicle was involved in a serious crash. The failure mileage was 77,000.

530

36,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The passenger air bag and seat belt lights were lit on my 2004 BMW 530I. This is the same symptom as described in the recall campaign number 08V384000 / NHTSA action number EA08001. I have never received a recall letter from BMW. I learned about the recall in Feb / 2010 and took the car to BMW dealer. I was told my car is not covered by the recall and I was charged for labor to replace the passenger seat occupancy detector mat (part # 52-10-9-142-348). I believe my car should be included in the BMW recall campaign.

530

36,000 miles

The contact owns a 2004 BMW 530I. The contact was driving at an unknown speed on normal road conditions when the "passenger air bag" warning light indicator illuminated on the instrument panel. The warning indicator remained illuminated until the engine was turned off. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer. The vehicle was repaired under the service warranty. The identical failure occurred after the prior repair. There was a recall under NHTSA campaign id number 08V384000 (air bags:frontal). However, the VIN was excluded from the recall defect. The vehicle has not been repaired for the malfunction at this time. The failure mileage was 36,000. The current mileage was 70,000.

530

60,000 miles

The contact owns a 2004 BMW 530I. The contact stated that his BMW passenger sensor mat activates on the instrument panel to alert him that the air bags will not deploy on the passenger side in the event of a crash. The dealer stated that the VIN was not included in NHTSA campaign id number 08V384000 (air bags:frontal), although the failures were identical. The failure mileage was 60,000.

530

46,000 miles

The contact owns a 2004 BMW 525. The contact stated that two air bag lights illuminated on May 18, 2009. The lights indicated that the front passenger air bag failed as well as the restraint for the air bag. The dealer stated that the VIN was excluded from NHTSA campaign id number 08V384000 (air bags:frontal), although the failures were identical. The vehicle will be taken in for diagnostic testing. The failure and current mileages were 46,000.

530

26,000 miles

The contact owns a 2004 BMW 530I. While driving approximately 35 mph on normal road conditions, the passenger side frontal air bag warning indicator illuminated on the instrument panel. The indicator remained lit until the engine was turned off. There was an occupant seated in the front passenger seat at the time. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer for diagnostic testing and they stated that the failure was due to the front seat occupancy sensor. The VIN was excluded from NHTSA campaign id number 08V384000 (air bags, frontal), although the failures were identical. The vehicle has not been repaired. The VIN was not accepted by the system. The failure mileage was 26,000 and current mileage was 41,000.

530

73,000 miles

I own a 2004 BMW 545I sedan and the passenger airbag light came on for a while already, and I read about the recall on your website and called BMW na and they told me that my car was not under the recall. And told me to bring it to one of the BMW dealers to get it fix which I will have to pay for. I checked at one of the BMW dealerships and they told me it will cost me more than $1000 to fix the passenger\'s seat airbag sensor. I just don't understand why my car is not under their recall list when my car matches the exact description of the recall they are having?! please help. Thank you!

530

67,000 miles

The contact owns a 2004 BMW 530I. The contact noticed that the air bag warning indicator would constantly illuminate on the instrument control panel, which indicated that the front passenger air bag was inoperative. He called the dealer in reference to NHTSA campaign id number 08V384000 (air bags:frontal) and was informed that they were waiting for a response from the manufacturer. The contact called the manufacturer and was informed that they were in the process of creating a VIN range and will then send out recall notices. The vehicle could be repaired at the cost of $3,000, after which the contact could inquire about reimbursement. The vehicle has not been repaired. The failure mileage was 67,000 and current mileage was 72,000.

530 6-cyl

27,000 miles

I just bought a 2004 BMW 530I with only 27,000 miles but that passenger side sensor that detects whether the seat is occupied was not functioning so the airbag warning light was on. We had to pay close to a thousand dollars to install a new sensor. My complaint is to know why a manufacturer is not responsible to make sure the supplemental restraint system is working properly when the car is so new. BMW North America was very evasive when contacted but the car was out of warranty that had expired five months ago.

530 6-cyl

Automatic transmission

50,500 miles

The consumer's vehicle was involved in a crash with 2004 BMW 325I. Upon impact, both air bags did not deploy. The impact was the passenger side front door. The passenger side window shattered and fell into pieces. The car was taken to the dealership for repairs. The consumer has not yet reported the air bag failure to the manufacturer. There was one injury. A police report and pictures were taken. The consumer has the pictures. The insurance company has been notified. The speed was 25 mph. Ms. Packard: The summary report created by the vehicle safety hot line does not clearly identify your vehicle. Please review the information on the vehicle owner's questionnaire and verify that your vehicle is a 2004 BMW 530I. Also, please provide a copy of the police report and photographs.

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